Fluoride Exposure In Utero Linked To Lower IQ In Kids, Study Says

Year after year, more and more people are becoming aware of the harmful effects fluoride can have on the human body. Fluoride has been a known neurotoxin for a long time, but the government claims it benefits our teeth.

In reality, it’s not even known to actually prevent the buildup of harmful oral bacteria; however, it is known to be toxic, with long-term ingestion linked to brain, heart, and bone issues. Fluoride is also an endocrine disruptor, and can affect your thyroid gland, pineal gland, and blood sugar levels.

Many universities and established scientific publications have gathered data on the health risks associated with fluoride. For example, a 2014 study conducted by Harvard School of Public Health and Icahn School of Medicine studied the effects of certain developmental neurotoxicants, including fluoride.

The researchers stated that children exposed to fluoride in drinking water showed “an average IQ decrement of about seven points in children exposed to raised fluoride concentrations.”

Well, another groundbreaking study was just published on Tuesday in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, further supporting that fluoride exposure can cause a reduction in IQ levels. However, this study was conducted in Mexico, where there is no fluoride added to drinking water (though there is some naturally occurring), meaning that much of the fluoride children are exposed to comes from sources outside of water.

Can you imagine how much fluoride we’re exposed to, given that it’s added to most of the drinking water all over North America and it’s in our conventional toothpaste brands, too?

The study involved approximately 300 sets of mothers and their children in Mexico. The researchers evaluated children on their cognitive development twice over a period of 12 years. To be clear, fluoride isn’t actually added to the public water system in Mexico, but children are still exposed to fluoride through toothpaste, naturally-occurring fluoride, supplements, and fluoridated salt, among other sources.

The researchers measured fluoride through urine analysis. The results showed a decrease in intelligence test scores for every 0.5 milligram-per-liter rise in fluoride exposure beyond 0.8 milligrams per liter found in urine. The researchers noted that fluoride exposure in utero was especially influential on IQ.

The study results read:

In this study, higher levels of maternal urinary fluoride during pregnancy (a proxy for prenatal fluoride exposure) that are in the range of levels of exposure in other general population samples of pregnant women as well as nonpregnant adults were associated with lower scores on tests of cognitive function in the offspring at 4 and 6–12 y old.

The average woman actually had 0.9 milligrams per liter of fluoride in their urine, meaning that many children were affected. Yet these levels are relatively low compared to in places where fluoride is added to the drinking water, milk, salt, and dental products. Can you imagine the effect this would have on children’s cognitive development?

Though there are other studies that have proven the link between decreased IQ and increased fluoride exposure, this is one of the first studies to detect a correlation between high fluoride exposure and lower IQ scores in utero.

The researchers reiterate the fact that fluoride needs to be further studied rather than just blindly added to products, stating: “Our findings, combined with evidence from existing animal and human studies, reinforce the need for additional research on potential adverse effects of fluoride, particularly in pregnant women and children.”

Final Thoughts

All of this information isn’t meant to scare you, but rather empower you! There are options to detoxify from fluoride as well as ways to avoid it. You can start by looking at some all-natural toothpaste options that are fluoride-free (I like Green Beaver), or even purchase a filter that removes fluoride from your drinking water (like a Berkey)!

What’s exciting is that this information is becoming more mainstream and accepted throughout society. Even CNN covered a story on the study discussed in this article! There used to be this nervous haze surrounding the topic of fluoride — it was sort of the “elephant in the room” — but now it’s part of an important discussion being had by scientists and concerned community members alike.